Shock-proof carton



Aug. 9, 1955 w. B. LEAVENS 2,714,981

SHOCK-PROOF CARTON Filed Jan. 12, 1953 V IN VEN TOR. Mllz'am AB. Zeal msHTTOPNE Y United States Patent SHOCK-PROQF CARTON William B. Leavens,West Orange, N. J., assignor to The Wilkata Folding Box Company, Kearny,N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application January 12, 1953, SerialNo. 330,796

10 Claims. (Cl. 229-68) The present invention relates to paperreceptacles, such as boxes or cartons constructed from cardboard blanks,and, more particularly, to shock-proof or cushioned boxes for packagingarticles which are of a fragile nature and require special packaging toprotect the same, these boxes being an improvement over the typedisclosed in United 1 States Patents 2,513,902 and 2,533,070.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a box ofthe foregoing character which has an inner sleeve adapted to receivearticles of various shapes and cross-section.

Another object is to provide such a box wherein the inner sleeve isexpansible and is adapted to adjust itself to snugly retain the packagedarticle.

Another object is to provide such a box wherein the inner sleeve has aself adjusting pocket for receiving a portion of the article and retainthe same against movement endwise within the box.

Another object is to provide such a box which can be constructed from asingle blank in a simple and inexpensive manner.

A further object is to provide such a box which can be preassembled andcan be shipped in collapsed condition to the packer.

A still further object is to provide such a box which is set up for usefrom its collapsed condition with a mini mum of effort while insertingthe article therein.

Other and further objects will be obvious upon an understanding of theillustrative embodiment about to be described, or will be indicated inthe appended claims, and various advantages not referred to herein willoccur to one skilled in the art upon employment of the invention inpractice.

A preferred embodiment of the invention has been chosen for purposes ofillustration and description and is shown in the accompanying drawing,forming a part of the specification, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a blank in its fiat condition from which thebox in accordance with the invention is constructed.

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the box in its set-up position priorto the insertion of an article, this view being taken about midwaybetween the ends of the box.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 33 on Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 2 with the article inserted in the box.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the box shown in a collapsed state.

Referring to the drawing and more particularly to Fig. 1 thereof, thereis shown a box blank stamped or cut out of a sheet of cardboard or thelike which has a series of ten successive panels P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, P6,P7, P8, P9, and P integrally connected along parallel fold lines orcreases 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23, respectively. The first,second, and third panels, P1, P2, and P3, respectively, are providedwith conventional end flaps Cir for closing the ends of the box, and thefirst and/ or fifth panels are provided with an adhesive coating 24 forsecuring the same together upon assembly of the box in the mannerdescribed hereinafter. The ends of the sixth panel P6 may be recessed at25 and the ends of the ninth panel P9 may converge to facilitateinsertion of an article into the box.

In accordance with one of the features of the invention a flap F1 is cutout of the seventh and eighth panels, P7 and P8, respectively, and isfoldably connected to the seventh panel along a fold line 26 parallel toand intermediate the fold lines 20 and 21; and a second flap F2,narrower than fiap F1, is cut out of the eighth panel P8 and is foldablealong the fold line 22. The free edges of the flaps F1 and F2 face eachother and are defined by severing the panel PS along a line 27. It willbe appreciated that the location of the flaps F1 and F2 could bereversed with the flap F1 cut out of the seventh and eighth panels andfoldably connected to the eighth panel and with the flap F2 cut out ofthe seventh panel.

In Figs. 2 and 3, the blank is shown folded and secured to provide abox, rectangular in cross-section, which has inner and outer sleevesconstituted in the manner about to be described.

The outer sleeve comprises the first five panels at one end of theblank, namely, panels P1, P2, P3, P4, and P5, with the inside of thefirst panel P1 secured to the outside of the fifth panel P5.

The inner sleeve comprises the first five panels at the other end of theblank, namely, panels P6, P7, P8, P9, and P10, which are somewhatnarrower than the panels P1, P2, P3, and P4. The sixth panel P6 extendsdiagonally from the first panel P1 to the second panel P2 and is spacedtherefrom. The seventh panel P7 is adjacent the second panel P2 and theeighth panel P8 is adjacent the third panel P3 with the fold lines 16and 21 disposed in a common plane extending diagonally across the box.The ninth panel P9 is opposite and in converging relation with the sixthpanel P6 and extends diagonally from the third panel P3 to the fourthpanel P4 and is spaced therefrom. The tenth panel P10 is adjacent thefourth panel P4 and is relatively movable therewith. However, in someapplications it may be desirable to secure the tenth panel P10 to thefourth panel P4.

Where the panels are so arranged, the flap F1 extends diagonally fromthe second and seventh panels towards the third and eighth panels, andthe flap F2 extends in the opposite direction with its outer surface insliding contact with the inner surface of the flap F1 to retain thelatter in its diagonal position. While the flap F2 is considerablynarrower than the flap F1, it is still of a Width sufficient to soretain the flap F1, when the flaps are forced outwardly upon insertionof the article.

In Fig. 4, the box is shown with an article A inserted therein, whicharticle is schematically represented in broken outline. This article isshown as having a cylindrical outer contour, but it will be appreciatedfrom the following description that it could be polygonal or irregularin shape. The article engages the sixth and ninth panels which areusually bowed outwardly, thereby to snugly retain the article inengagement at opposite sides and out of contact with the outer sleeve orthe box proper. The article also engages the flaps F1 and F2, whichslide relatively to provide an expansible pocket adapted to receive aportion of the article to hold the article out of contact with the outersleeve and at the same time to prevent lengthwise movement of thearticle in the box. By reason of the converging relation of the sixthand ninth panels, the article is urged towards the pocket. Also, sincethe sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth panels are not secured tothe outer sleeve, the inner sleeve constiuted by these panels can expandand adjust itself.

to provide a resilient-like support for cushioning the article againstshock.

It will also be appreciated that the box can be folded and glued, asshown in Fig. 5, by the manufacturer thereof and can then be shipped ina flattened or collapsed state with the panels P2 and P3, respectively,superimposed. This is made possible because the inner sleeve floats, inthe outer sleeve to adjust itself in flat condition and because of therelation of the fold lines 16 and 21 which provide for folding of theouter and inner sleeves along a common line.

When the packer receives the box, it can be set up simply by applyingpressure, either manually or by automatic machinery, at the fold lines16 and 18 from opposite directions inwardly to. sufficiently open thebox for reception of the article, which, upon insertion, causes theouter sleeve to assume. its rectangular shape. The recessed orconverging ends of the panels P6 and P9 provide a funnel-like openingwhich facilitates insertion of the article without damaging the innersleeve. The continued downward cut 30 (converging ends) on panel P9 andthe. reduced panel P10 permits the ready insertion of the tucks 31 inclosing the carton.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that the presentinvention provides a, simple, economical, practical and effectiveshock-proof box or carton which is readily manufactured and assembled,can be shipped in collapsed condition, and practically set itself up forreception of the article.

As. various changes may be made in the form, construction, andarrangement of the parts herein, without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention and without sacrificing any of its advantages, itis to be understood that all matters are to be interpreted asillustrative and not in any limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

l. A- collapsible shock-proof box, rectangular in crosssection, formedfrom a folded single blank comprising a series of ten successive panelsintegrally connected along parallel fold lines to form inner and outersleeves, the outer sleeve comprising five panels adjacent. one end ofsaid blank, with the inside of the first panel being secured to theoutside of the fifth panel, and the inner sleeve comprising five panelsvadjacent the other end of said blank, the inner sleeve panels beingnarrower than the. first four outer sleeve panels, the sixth panelextending from the first panel to the second panel and being spaced fromthe fold line between the first and second panels, the seventh panellying alongside the second panel and the eighth panel lying alongsidethe third panel, flap means, formed out of the seventh and, eighthpanels and extending from the second panel to the third panel, said flapmeans being spaced from the fold line between the seventh and eighthpanels and being arranged to provide an expansible pocket adapted toreceive and be engaged by an article packed in the box, the ninth panelextending from the third panel to the fourth panel and being spaced fromthe fold line between the third and fourth panels, and the tenth panellying alongside the fourth panel and relatively movable therewith.

2. A box according to claim 1 wherein said flap means include aflap cutout of said seventh and eighth panels between the ends thereof andfoldably connected to one of said panels along a fold line parallel toand spaced from the fold line between said seventh and eighth panels.

3. A box according to claim 2, wherein said flap means includes a secondflap cut out of and foldably connected to the other panel.

4. A box according to claim 3, wherein said second flap is narrower thansaid first flap.

5. A box according to claim 1, wherein said flap means includes a flapcut out of said seventh and eighth panels between the ends thereof andfoldably connected to said seventh panel along a fold line parallel toand spaced from the fold line between said seventh and eighth panels.

6. A box according to claim 5, wherein said flap means includes a secondflap cut out of said eighth panel and foldably connected thereto alongthe fold line between said eighth and ninth panels.

7. A box according to claim 6, wherein said flaps are in overlapping.relation and relatively movable.

8. A box according to claim 7, wherein the inside of said first flapengages. the outside of said second flap.

9. A box according to claim 1, wherein said sixth and ninth panels aredisposed in converging relationship with respect to each other, wherebythe article to be packed therein is more securely cushioned.

10. A box according to claim 9, wherein the distance between the sixthand ninth panels adjacent the flap means is greater than the distancebetween the sixth and ninth panels adjacent the first and fourth panels,whereby the article to be packed therein is urged toward said flap meansand prevented from contacting the first and fourth panels.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,611,529 Currivan Sept. 23, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 241,097 Great BritainOct. 15, 1925

